About

Gay Rights

A homosexual is defined as someone who is sexually attracted to other persons of the same sex. They exist in all classes, social groups, races, positions, and countries, regardless of their age or origin. As far as historians can trace back the past, homosexuals have always been in existence, including Julius Caesar, Plato, and Alexander the Great. Gays have existed for as long as history, but it is only until recently that being gay has actually become a socially acceptable thing. Throughout history, gays have been the victim of an onslaught of discrimination. Gays did not always have equal legal rights, were refused jobs and were subject to violence and harassment. Being gay was a dangerous thing so many people were afraid to come out. Same-sex marriage is a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. As of the Marriage Act 1961, the Australian definition of marriage is the union between a man and a woman. Currently, same-sex marriages are not permitted under Australian federal law and unions between same-sex couples entered into outside the country are not to be recognized as marriage in Australia. In November 2008, Parliament passed laws that recognized same-sex couples in federal law, offering them the same rights as unmarried heterosexual couples in areas such as taxation, social security and health, aged care and employment. This means that same-sex couples who can prove they are in a legitimate relationship have most of the rights of married couples since 1 July 2009. While this is not marriage, they are granted most of the same legal rights. The issue now is whether or not a gay couple should be able to enter into the union of marriage and gain all the exact same benefits and legal rights as a straight couple would.

Gay rights did not always have many supporters. In the past, almost no one spoke out for the equal treatment of homosexuals. Although gays have existed ever since the beginning of recorded history it was not until the 1970’s that a large organized movement for the gay rights began. The Stonewall Riots are considered to be the first time in history that homosexuals fought back against a government-sponsored system that persecuted against sexual minorities and the event that started the gay rights movement around the world. The Stonewall Inn became a gay bar in 1966 after it had been a restaurant and night club for heterosexuals. It was the only bar in New York where gay men were allowed to dance and attracted many people. Police raids were a very typical thing for bars, raids occurred on average once a month for each bar. During a raid, people would be lined up and would have their identification cards checked. Those without identification or dressed in drag, meaning men dressed in womens clothes, were arrested. Women were required to wear three pieces of feminine clothing and were arrested if found not wearing them. At 1:20 in the morning on June 28, 1969 police arrived in at the Stonewall Inn's double doors and announced that they were taking the place. About 200 people were in the bar that night. Police barred the doors and confusion quickly spread. When they started lining people up, men began to refuse to show their identification cards and police began harassing the patrons of the bar. As people were being taking out of the bar a crowd started to grow. Soon, 100-150 people had gathered outside and the situation became to get heated. Police started beating people they were arresting, a woman in handcuffs fought with four police officers and was hit in the head with a club. She was then throw into the back of a police wagon and the crowd became a mob. The police realized they would not be able to hold back the crowd as it had grown to near 600 people. Ten police officers barricaded themselves inside the Stonewall Inn. Garbage cans, garbage, bottles, rocks, and bricks were hurled at the building, breaking the windows. When demonstrators...

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

...﻿GAYRIGHTS IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Gay and lesbian teens are two to three times as more likely to commit teen suicide than other youths and about thirty percent of all completed suicides have been related to sexual identity crisis (Bullying statistics.org). Hilary Clinton states that, "Gayrights are human rights (United Nations Human Rights). Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, sex, ethnicity, color, religion, language or any other status: we are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. The discussion of equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gendered (LGBT) is still a very taboo topic for Trinidad and Tobago (Lewis, 2004). One of the issues surrounding the taboo nature of LGBT lies within the countries predominantly religious affiliations. Why are gays discriminated and how does religion play to bolster this belief? Although our society has long regarded homosexuals as a sin against god’s intentions, homosexual deserves equality and should have rights to marriage, raise children and educate the people on gays.
Persons of the LGBT community are chastised because of their sexual preference because it is...

...prohibited the "promotion" of gayrights and called for the punishment of anyone who "funds or sponsors homosexuality" or "abets homosexuality". The bill has not been passed and it still in process but those who are homosexual right now are being judge and given a life sentence for being gay they are still discussing the fact of the death penalty however foreign donors have threatened to cut aid if gayrights are not respected. In this case there is a lot of foreign pressures because the president of Uganda Yoweri Museveni needs to sign the bill and he may be criticize and come into intense international pressure not to do so. The president of the United States gave his opinion on this case and he just said it was something odious.
Why should hay marriage be legal:
Legalizing gay marriage should not harm any body since you have the right to choose who your partner is. Most of the people who are against gay marriage say that it is bad because it goes against their religion or its values and this should not be like that because everybody is different and everybody has the right to choose your religion and your values. Now gay marriage is being more accepted and its legal in 12 us states, however people are against it because they say that marriage is between a woman and a man and not a man and man or a woman and a...

...Today’s Rights for Gays & Lesbians
Today’s Rights for Gays & Lesbians
The state and federal laws for Gay's and Lesbian are unfair and discriminatory. In today’s ever so changing world it’s hard to keep up with laws. Most of the laws are printed on a fine line, but the rights for homosexuals are blurred. With the topic being hot in the media it is hard to get the correct story. Two of the most important rights that get blurred are marriage and same sex adoption. Same sex marriage is only legal in one state in the US, Massachusetts. Other than Massachusetts only four other countries allow same sex marriage. The Netherlands, Canada, Belgium and Spain.
[pic]
It is unknown how many countries allow adoptions by same sex parents. In the US, Florida, New Hampshire and Utah prohibited same sex adoptions. California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont and the District of Columbia along with a few others allow same-sex couples to adopt. All US states allow heterosexual adoptions. In all fairness is it not the American to get married, buy a house, have a family and grow old with the one you love?
[pic]
With all of that said you can see how homosexuals are discriminated. If we all pay the same taxes, have the same jobs and on the same Earth, why can’t we all have equal laws? If the lawmakers would stop and...

...Thesis Statement: The GayRights Movement dates back to the 19th century. By 1970 gay and lesbian organizations existed all over the United States and in other countries all over the world. Some supporters of the movement would say that our society as a whole has made great strides towards acceptance of homosexuality. However, gays and lesbians are still fighting for equality in 2009. The issues are vast and widespread, with same-sex marriage at the top of the list. In the world that we live in today one might be surprised to learn how many countries are accepting of gay and lesbians, as well as how many are not. The world has made progress within the last decade regarding this issue, but definitely not enough. We need to take steps to protect and balance Gayrights.
The Untied States is a country that is more favorable towards gay men and lesbian women, but not completely. The Society for Human Rights in Chicago, Illinois was the first documented gayrights organization in the United States (“The American GayRights Movement”). This dates back to 1924. In 1951, The Mattachine Society was founded. This was the first national gayrights organization, founded by Harry Hay (“The American GayRights Movement”)....

...﻿
Igniting the GayRights Movement
Although many regard the 1969 Stonewall Riots as the beginning of the gayrights movement in American, the mild tolerance of homosexual behaviors during WWII and the opportunities soldiers had to explore their sexuality was really what began the modern fight for LGBT rights to be recognized. The blossoming gay bar network in Germany gave those fighting overseas a chance to explore the queer social life, as well as the increased urban populations in America offering a place for gay men and women to connect. Without the exploration and connections that occurred during WWII, the Stonewall Riots and what many consider to be the beginning of the modern LGBT rights movement would not have happened. WWII and the ensuing homophile movement were essential to the LGBT rights movement.
1920’s Berlin set the stage for the homophile movement, with some historians believing there to be more gay bars and periodicals in post-WWI Berlin than in New York City some six decades later [GayRights Movement]. There was also increased leniency regarding Germany’s laws on homosexual behavior due to the founding of Berlin’s Institute for Sexual Science by Magnus Hirschfield in 1919 [GayRights Movement]. The Institute’s attempts to repeal Paragraph 175 of the...

...questions, asking what the big problem about gay marriage is. Why are so many U.S. citizens who are not for it? Why does it even matter to them anyways? Often it is not easy to comprehend how citizens think, but majority of the time it is easy to assume where to draw the line when interfering with someone else’s rights. In America any and everyone has the right to go out and obtain a driver’s license, we also have the right to say what we want, but who has the right to tell someone else who they should and shouldn’t marry? Though gay marriage is not of the norm, and marriage is for reproduction. Marrying someone of the same sex is a choice that a citizen should have for themselves.
A gay man from California, lost his partner during the September 11th, terrorist attacks. His partner was a flight attendant on the American Airlines flight 11, today he is now fighting the state and nation for survivors’ benefits, which should be rightfully granted to him because he is a widow. It took influential words while testifying to sway legislation to allow partial inheritance rights for domestic partners who are registered in California.
Partners Task Force for Gay and Lesbian couples directed a survey where over 50% of Lesbians and 40% of gay man dealt with issues while trying to obtain employment benefits, lower tax rates, and insurance...

...Love is something that is very popular in today's world. Everyone should be able to love and be loved, to be joined in marriage. But, some people don't get those rights simply because they're gay. Congress combines church and state to make marriage illegal. But, people have different religions, different beliefs, and different views on everything. Banning gay marriage violates a person's constitutional freedom.
The constitute states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." Church and state are being combined to rule out marriage for gays. Same sex marriage is illegal in all fifty states, and the U.S. Congress has passed a "Defense of Marriage Act" to block recognition of any future same sex marriages. The also have restricted rights to adoption and child raising.(Smith, Haider 14) But yet there is probably a population, small if any, of gays in every state. In 1977 Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Milk was the first openly gay man to be elected to a public office in California. Milk's career was cut short in 1978 when he was assassinated in City Hall on November 27, 1978.(Smith, Haider 129) People were so against Milk being openly gay they stuck back. President Bush indicated he opposes extending legal rights to homosexuals, saying he "believes marriage is between a man...

...about Gay Marriage in Connecticut. It has been an ongoing process trying to pass the same-sex marriage law, and Connecticut is one of the first 3 states to pass the law.
B. To inform the audience regarding Gay Marriage in Connecticut.
C. I am going to speak about how Gay Marriage became legal in Connecticut, what certain groups believe about Gay Marriage, how people in this world can have their own beliefs and make certain decisions about themselves, and what our own President believes in this issue.
D. Topical Pattern
E. During the surveys, I found out that most of the audience has some type of relation to someone who is of Gay/Lesbian or Bisexual. This is helpful to my speech because this means the audience has some knowledge of what is going on within the Gay community.
Kendall Marquez Informative Speech Outline
1. Introduction
2. Body
A. Legalization in Connecticut
I. Candidates for Same-Sex Marriages
II. Candidates against Same-Sex Marriages
B. Marriage is a basic civil right and people have their own beliefs
I. Marriage is legal and it is of the most basic laws in America
II. People can make their own choices
III. People can have their own beliefs and now they have a choice to do what they’ve always wanted.
C. Certain Religions are believed to be against same-sex marriage.
I. Ancient Definition
II. Religious groups and...